Ask The Profussor – Closing in on 900

Can I tell you a little secret? Maybe it’s not such a secret by now. But I really don’t like responding to questions as they are asked, and much prefer to tackle them in this forum. Naturally, I have a ridiculous reason. If I were to respond to all the questions as they came in, my ugly mug would be plastered all over the comment feed.

I totally need to try and get over that, because after three weeks the questions that need answers have really piled up. For those who do not know, I am committed to answering every question that is asked on the FLB, provided it includes a question mark.

We’ve got some doozeys today. So buckle up and get ready for the wildest ride in the wilderness.

Actually it came in second in the nation for midsize markets and first in the state overall. Granted, this was just another one of these polls asking people for their favorites. So I suspect there may be some sampling error in the results. Regardless, it’s great exposure for Saratoga and its market.

Since I know not what to make of this observation that’s stated as a question, I will answer it with an appropriate haiku:

This yellow snow beer
Tastes different to me today
Hand me another

Jessica R. asked me point blank a question on wine. Bless her heart:
This just made me realize that I haven’t seen any places that sell Canadian Ice Wine from the Niagara Falls region. This is fairly well-known wine region, and close enough geographically that I’m sure people from this area have visited them (lots of people go to Niagara Falls). Professor, why do you think this is?

Ice wine isn’t cheap, and it’s sweet. Sweet wine gets a bum rap by the wine snobs who have been conditioned to say they prefer dry wines. Those who generally say they prefer sweet wines aren’t typically accustomed to paying a lot for the privilege, as sweet wines can be had for a song.

So ice wine falls into this weird no-man’s-land limbo. But this is also the reason why it’s hard to find a broad selection of Sauternes or Tokaji (arguable two of the worlds great wines).

See, that’s sweet on sweet. I understand there are folks into that kind of thing. But I like contrast. Red on brown. Sweet on savory. Fruit on cheese. Sticky on melty. There may never be a Tour de Mozzarella and Raspberry, but there will never be a Tour de Sweet Potato and Raspberry.

irisira is all over this installment of AskTP:
I can’t speak to them myself, but I have seen pictures, and apparently their mocha latte is quite good. Is it as good as Caffe Vero’s? It stands to reason, maybe, as the two shops apparently have some sort of partnership in that Caffe Vero sells Chocolate Mill pastries. They do the heart in the mocha, like Caffe Vero does…

All this talk of the Chocolate Mill has really solidified my need to get up there. Maybe I need an escort. Any volunteers?

irisira took some heat for her sandwich:
I know Boar’s Head is far from perfect, but they’re better than many options. (I’d love a local option, if anyone would like to suggest one – there HAS to be one, right?)

When I did the Eat Local Challenge a while back, I did find a few regional producers of deli meats and cheeses. By some standards they qualify as local. You can check it out here.

The Delmar Farmers Market ought to be careful how it moves forward. Things like Fin and The Cheese Traveler make the market a destination for plenty of people. If they want to become just like all the other markets in the region and hold a strict line on being producer-only, they will lose the main thing that made them special in the first place: quality vendors you can’t find elsewhere.

Open That Bottle Night is a tool. It’s a way to get people to finally open a bottle of wine that they think is just too precious to ever open. There is no reason to be married to the date of the event. Actually, for you it may make more sense to celebrate OTBN the week prior to your trip so there is one additional slot available for bottles purchased on vacation.

Yes, I have been. No, I haven’t ordered a sandwich. I do love the small, packed, and cramped Italian market. I still remember when DiBruno Brothers in Philadelphia only had that small narrow stall in the Italian market. Now it’s a gourmet palace. Someone needs to remind DiBruno’s of their roots and get them to stop pre-cutting and pre-wrapping so many of their cheeses.

KB @ Home-Baked Happiness has an idea for a story:
Maybe you should do a post in which you introduce people to the ethnic markets. I’d find it helpful to hear why I should go there: What are the top three things, say, that I should buy at Cardona’s, if I’ve never been? At the DeFazio’s store? At Dnipro? Etc.?

This sounds like an AOA piece. AOA Greg, if you are reading this, let me know offline.

Oh, it’s not that bad. The bread is still baked here in America. It’s just that the corporate profits go to Mexico. Personally, I think turnabout is fair play. Americans are rumored to have introduced wheat into the Mexican corn-based diet (which resulted in Mexicans getting fat). Now the Mexicans are loading our bread with HFCS, which is making us fat. Fair enough.

Not all stores are created equal, which is why stores like the HWFC are valuable. For the most part you can walk in there and trust the products they sell. Our children, on the other hand, are totally screwed. Although maybe when all the oil runs out the factory farms will shut down and food will get better? You know, provided there aren’t massive famines and you can actually get food to eat.

No, it shouldn’t. I’m endorsing the idea of individual locations (not single locations). So if a good place has two outlets, you’ve got to commit to which one is The Best. Because there can only be one. And no two places are exactly the same. One is always going to be just a little bit better. In this case, I would totally give the edge to Saratoga. However, Caffe Vero’s Lark Street location still comes out on top.

Braden is working on a cookbook. Something he wants people to buy for the recipes. I wasn’t sure if he would be comfortable with me giving out the early draft of this recipe, so I kind of worked around that point to bring you all the post. Hope it wasn’t too frustrating. The mushrooms, incidentally, were simply common buttons. If they are good enough for Jacques Pepin, they are good enough for me.

Well, I needed kimchi, and they have it in bulk at a good price. Since they only have one brand, I don’t need to think about which one might be better. And while it may not be the best, it makes a passable kimchi fried rice.

Awesomedude hit a nerve:
Speaking of Bruschetta how many Bruschettas are really just toasted bread with can tomatoes thrown on top, the bread not rubbed with garlic etc?

All of these four-season tomato dishes just kill me. The bruschetta is just the tip of the iceberg. Panzanella and caprese round out the list. These things should be banned from every printed menu and only be available on a specials list during the height of summer when they are advisable to eat.

The details of the story were hazy. It was a long time ago. I figured someone would pop in to add color commentary. Thanks for helping to tell the parts that I forgot. And give that man of yours a big sloppy kiss for me. I miss you guys and hope to see you in the spring.

Ha! I had a sneaking suspicion about that pie. I witnessed one parade by our table and was somewhat aghast. Apparently, Viktoria’s recipes are still a closely guarded secret, or her words fell on deaf ears. A pity.

You don’t have to ask twice, I would love a reason to go to Glens Falls and visit The Chocolate Mill. Consider me volunteered.

Now the producer only thing is complicated. Dancing Ewe Farm in Granville sells the most amazing cheeses at the Saturday market in Saratoga but I can’t buy the olive oil they sell which is produced in Italy by the wife’s family http://www.dancingewe.com/Olio-d-Oliva-Extra-vergine.html

I understand that it would violate the producer only agreement but in a case such as this where we can get unfiltered, cold pressed olive oil and talk to the people who produce it, I strongly feel that an exception should be made.

You say you can freeze anything, but is that really a good idea? I refuse to freeze coffee beans because I don’t want them to pick up on odors in the freezer. I’m assuming the same could be true of spices. I would be hesitant to freeze anything you’re trying to retain specifically for flavor. As I type this I recall I have a bunch of vanilla beans in the freezer on the recommendation of the guys at Adventure in Food Trading. Then again, I tend to only use the inner scrapings of beans and haven’t retained the pods for infusions or anything yet so I suppose that is a decent exception.

If you end up writing about ethnic markets, don’t you dare (yes I said dare!) ignore Frank & Giovanni’s Market on Morton St. in Albany – the best Hispanic/Caribbean market we have around here (and yes the name is Italian just to throw you off). Nope, it’s not high-falutin’ like Cardona’s, but it’s real and perfect for anything you need to make authentic latino food.

I had an ongoing, unofficial series for AOA in which I highlighted some of my favorite items at various ethnic markets locally, including (as mentioned by another commenter) Frank & Giovanni’s. I am sure there are still quite a few left for you to explore though. Happy hunting!!

Jess, that’s probably how I learned about it and found everything I needed to make pasteles! I would love to know why it’s called Frank & Giovanni’s though – is it just a hold over from when the neighborhood was likely made up of a different ethnicity?

That’s always been my assumption. Technically it still has two names: Frank and Giovanni’s AND La Marqueta. I kind of like that dichotomy, in the same way I like the ethnic dichotomies that exist all over Central Avenue.

panzanella when in August is the best thing ever. Couldn’t agree more- generally anything with fresh tomatoes left whole (as in not in a sauce where can san marzano can tomatoes are fine) should not be allowed in restaurants except July-September.